What is life in New York/Manhattan like?

I'm currently living in San Francisco but I met with a recruiter from a company based in New York, he seemed pretty enthusiastic about me and it seemed like the type of company I might like working for. Plus, they offer relocation assistance and great benefits, it seems. Now the likelihood of me getting hired at this place, or if I would go if I did get hired is still all up in the air. In fact, I'm still in school so I don't really plan on quitting unless I get a really solid offer that is everything I want.

Anyways, my question is about the city life in New York. I find the impersonal, unfriendly, hectic vibe of San Francisco to be a bit much sometimes. The concrete, the sirens, the horns, the dirt, the homeless; it can all be very grating, and I can't imagine what living in an even bigger city would be like. On the upside, it's closer to my family in Pennsylvania, but I really don't want to be trapped in some concrete prison devoid of the natural world and full of mean people.

I've never been to New York and I've just heard it's a really big city... Not being well suited for even the city life of little SF makes me wonder how I would fare in a place like NY.

Well if San Francisco gets on your nerves than NYC will send you over the edge. Personally I love NYC, but I love big cities. However if you have family in Pennsylvania its worth the move to be closer, plus an additional perk of NYC is that it has an incrediably well thought out public transportation system, and alot of people work in NYC but live on Long Island, in southern Conneticut, New Jersey, etc.. and the commuter train system runs into those areas and can get you into the city pretty easily. If you don't want to live in NYC you can live in Connecticut or Westchester County, Long Island, etc.. and have your little oasis away from the city.

And no you don't need a gun, that's a bit of an overreaction don't you think! NYC gets a bad rap for crime, but considering its size its actually "relatively safe" its actually one of the safer big cities in the U.S. It has significantly less violent crime (% of population wise, not raw numbers) compared to San Francisco. It is ranked significantly lower than San Fran on the ranking list. Food for thought.

if you can't stand sf, then you won't take nyc. nyc is much bigger than sf and more hectic than you can ever imagine. as for the homeless situation, sf's homeless are more visible, ny's homeless tend to be more hidden, or swept under the rug by police.

on the upside, nyc has tons more to see and do than sf.

if you want to, you can live in pennsylvania and commute into nyc. just a matter of priorities for you.

My friend, I think the two links below will very helpful in answering you questions about New York City.

Good luck on you future career.
Native New Yorker

I heard people from new york are soo rude!...

let me tell u i love it,i live in Bronx NY n i hate it every time i go to Manhattan i get so happy,i shop ova there like Macy's,gap,old navy but there is alot of homeless that's the way life is deal with it n there is mean people u just walk away n do what u came there for.have

HAVE FUN BYE

All the things you hate about San Francisco also exist in New York City. Living in San Fran, at least you can occasionally get a glimpse of the ocean and some palm trees. There's no greenery in New York City. However, I would still go for it so you can experience as much of the world as possible. If, after living there for a while, you find you don't like it, you can leave. Plus, like you said, it's closer to your family who I know you care a lot about.